There are many conflicting priorities involved in programming Jewish and Israeli-oriented film festivals in the US, and since October 7, it has become an even more fraught task.
Since the war started, festival programmers have been struggling with a difficult balancing act: Programming movies that show all aspects of Jewish life around the world but also paying appropriate attention to the massacre and the war.
To find out how US film festivals are coping with this dilemma, I spoke to two directors of major Jewish/Israeli film festivals: Isaac Zablocki – the director of the Israel Film Center and film programs at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, among them, the recently concluded Other Israel Film Festival – and Igor Shteyrenberg, executive director of the Miami Jewish Film Festival, the 28th edition of which opens on January 9. I wanted to get their perspectives on how this year has been different from all other years.
The Other Israel Film Festival, which was founded by Carole Zabar and for which Zablocki is the executive director, seems to have had an especially complex mission this year since it is the only American film festival focused on both Israeli and Palestinian cinema. It presents films and television series that take an in-depth look into Israeli and Palestinian societies, and the festival fights to bring recognition to marginalized voices within Israel.
Despite these challenges, Zablocki said the latest edition of the festival was especially successful.
“This year, the Other Israel Film Festival showed films and hosted conversations of Israelis and Palestinians who stand together and believe in a shared future and the right for both sides to exist,” he said.
“It was amazing to see the grateful audiences return [after skipping last year’s festival due to the events of October 7]; the films and conversations gave our audiences hope. They engaged and challenged themselves as they listened to other perspectives and proved that civil conversations and mutual respect can exist even in these challenging times.”
This year’s festival opened with the film The Other, directed by Joy Sela, which explores the complex relationship between Palestinians and Israelis and focuses on people still committed to coexistence despite everything. The diverse festival concluded with Michael Winterbottom’s latest movie, Shoshana, a fact-based historical drama that centers on the romance between a politically involved young Jewish woman and a British police officer in British Mandate-era Palestine.
SPEAKING ABOUT this year’s upcoming Miami Jewish Film Festival, Shteyrenberg said, “Our selection process for this year’s festival has been profoundly shaped by our dedication to presenting stories that matter – stories that engage with the complexities of the human experience and resonate deeply with our community.
“In the aftermath of the October 7 tragedy,” Shteyrenberg shared, “we felt an even greater sense of responsibility to curate a program that not only acknowledges the pain and gravity of this moment but also uplifts the resilience, unity, and enduring spirit that define humanity.
“Each film in this year’s lineup has been chosen with care, reflecting artistic excellence, emotional depth, and the power to inspire meaningful conversations.
“Of Dogs and Men, by Dani Rosenberg, captures the poignant journey of a teenage girl searching for her lost dog amid a landscape of grief and destruction, offering a tender exploration of loss and hope.
“Meanwhile, October H8te, by Wendy Sachs, serves as a vital documentary examining the alarming rise of antisemitism and anti-Israel activism across the United States in the wake of October 7, shedding light on urgent issues that demand our attention,” he said.
Asked how he felt Miami audiences would respond to the more graphic and disturbing documentaries, he said, “In the wake of the October 7 tragedy, we recognize that while the wounds are still fresh, our community has demonstrated a readiness – and an urgent need – to engage with these narratives.
“These films provide a vital space for reflection, understanding, and collective healing, offering both solace and the opportunity to confront the complexities of our shared experiences. Our audience’s capacity to embrace meaningful stories has been evident in the conversations sparked by the three major films we’ve already presented in the lead-up to the festival.
“Yariv Mozer’s We Will Dance Again captured the human spirit’s determination to persevere; Duki Dror’s Supernova provided a nuanced exploration of resilience and loss; and Beneath the Silence, presented with the Israeli filmmakers in attendance, brought audiences face-to-face with the deeply personal impact of trauma and recovery.
“These screenings have not only initiated dialogue but also laid the groundwork for the healing process, affirming the role of cinema as a bridge between grief and hope. As we prepare to share the largest-ever collection of stories that confront the heartbreak of October 7 while celebrating resilience and unity, we are confident that our audience is ready to engage with these films on a direct level.”
Films shown in Miami
FILMS AT Miami this year will show different sides of life in Israel. Soul of a Nation, the opening-night film directed by Jonathan Jakubowitz, “celebrates the unbreakable bonds of community in the face of adversity,” Shteyrenberg said, and features interviews with key Israeli political figures from all sides of the spectrum.
But as always, the Miami Jewish Film Festival will spotlight the diversity of Jewish experience. Documentaries that will be shown this year include Oren Rudavsky’s Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire, a profile of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning author, and Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse by Molly Bernstein and Philip Dolin, a portrait of the artist who created Maus, an influential graphic novel about the Holocaust.
There are also dramas like the crime thriller Guns & Moses by Salvador Litvak, about a rabbi in a desert town who fights back after his community is attacked, which stars Mark Feuerstein, Dermot Mulroney, and Christopher Lloyd.
Miami will also show the best of recent Israeli cinema, including such films as Tom Nesher’s Ophir Award-winning Come Closer, about a young woman coping with a tragedy; Maya Dreifuss’s neo-noir Highway 65 starring Tali Sharon and Idan Amedi; and Erez Tadmor’s crowd-pleasing haredi-dating dramedy, Matchmaking 2.
The Israel Film Center Festival at the Marlene Meyerson JCC is held in the spring, and the center recently had a screening of Come Closer, which was hosted by actors John Turturro and Paul Rudd. Zablocki said he felt that US Jewish and Israeli film festivals are critically important in presenting Israeli films around the world now that Israeli filmmakers report being turned down and often virtually blacklisted by mainstream festivals.
“With all the lack of inclusion of Israeli films in international festivals, the Jewish and Israeli film festivals are becoming one of the few homes for many of these films. This is an important role and needs to be nurtured,” he said.
Speaking about Come Closer, he said, “This is the film that people need to see about Israel. It is a completely non-political film that shows life in Israel in the most vibrant and humanizing way. It shows how much talent comes out of Israel and how normal life can be. I hope this film gets a huge mainstream embrace.”
One thing is certain: Audiences are eager to see these diverse stories of Jewish life from Israel and around the world.
Shteyrenberg said, “These films remind us that even in our most challenging times, art has the ability to heal, inspire, and bring us closer together. With our carefully curated program, the largest in the world featuring Jewish and Israeli stories, we hope to create a space for reflection, dialogue, and a renewed sense of solidarity.”
For more information on the Miami Jewish Film Festival, go to miamijewishfilmfestival.org and visit the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan website mmjccm.org/arts-film/film/israel-film-center to find out about upcoming programs.